Compassion-Focused Intervention for Highly Self-Critical Individuals: Pilot Study

Abstract

Self-criticism is a transdiagnostic process associated with a range of psychological problems. This uncontrolled pilot study evaluated the feasibility and acceptability of a six-session intervention using methods from compassion-focused therapy to reduce self-criticism, as well as investigating changes in a range of outcome measures. Twenty-three university student participants with significant impaired functioning associated with high levels of self-criticism received six individual weekly treatment sessions and a 2-month follow-up appointment. Acceptability was assessed through participant feedback. The intervention appeared to be feasible in terms of recruitment and retention of participants, and participant feedback indicated that overall the intervention seemed acceptable. There were statistically significant improvements between pre- and post-intervention for self-criticism, functional impairment, mood, self-esteem and maladaptive perfectionism with medium to large effect sizes at both post-intervention and follow-up. Gains were maintained or increased between post-treatment and 2-month follow-up. The study showed preliminary evidence of effectiveness of a compassion-focused intervention for self-critical students which appeared to be a feasible and acceptable treatment approach. This intervention now requires investigation in a randomized controlled trial.

Psychological and Physiological Effects of the Mindful Lovingkindness Compassion Program on Highly Self-Critical University Students in South Korea

“…Although differences between pre- and post-intervention were significant on the SC, SR, LCS, and FC-S for both groups, a notable difference in effect size was observed, with the MLCP group displaying large effect sizes ( d = 1.28–2.64). Findings of the current study are consistent with previous studies that show that MLCP is effective for people who suffer from psychological distress and the number of studies that have shown that mindfulness- or compassion-based programs are effective at enhancing self-soothing and at reducing self-criticism, depression, anxiety, and stress ( Gilbert and Procter, 2006 ; Gu et al, 2015 ; Arimitsu, 2016 ; Matos et al, 2017 ; Rose et al, 2018 ). The current study suggests that cultivating mindfulness and compassion may be protective interventions when treating high SC individuals.…”

“…Although compassion involves a physiological response, most previous studies have relied on subjective measurements when investigating its effects ( Kirby et al, 2017a ). To the best of our knowledge, few studies have tried to verify compassion’s physiological effects among highly self-critical individuals ( Halamová et al, 2019 ; Rockliff et al, 2008 ; Rose et al, 2018 ). One study investigated the differences in HRV with different SC levels during exposure to a guided imagery task ( Halamová et al, 2019 ).…”

Exploring the Relationships Between Mindfulness, Self-Compassion, and Shame

“…This was an important result because it confirmed that negative self-judgment is strongly implicated in the experience of shame. Therefore, self-compassion may be more relevant to the experience of shame because it manifests on self-judgment mostly, and more importantly, it may imply that therapies focusing on developing a non-judgemental attitude toward distressing thoughts and feelings might be more beneficial (e.g., Rose, McIntyre, & Rimes, 2018) to protect individuals from the experience of shame. For example, it may be that some form of cognitive therapy which focuses on self-criticism is more favorable for reducing shame than mindfulness-based therapies.…”

“…In line with previous studies, this study demonstrates that higher levels of self-compassion, and more importantly non-judgment attitude, are significantly associated with lower levels of shame. In general, interventions that target judgemental attitudes toward the self and promote self-acceptance (e.g., Rose et al, 2018) are likely to be highly beneficial in dealing with both shame and a wide variety of psychological disorders. Specifically, in addition to self-compassion focused therapies, loving-kindness meditation might be constructive for those who suffer from negative self-judgment and shame (Woods & Proeve, 2014).…”

Internal and External Predictors of Vocational High School Students’ Employability: The Role and Functions of School Counselors

“…Employability allows individuals to do selfidentification and be aware of their potential careers (Rose, McIntyre, & Rimes, 2018). Individuals with good employability may prepare themselves to face market competition and understand the required specialization to apply their knowledge and skills at diverse, dynamic market situation.…”